Orthodontic headgear



Jan. 28, 1969 F. o. NELSON 3,423,832

' ORTHODONTIC HEADGEAR Filed Feb. e, 1967 I Sheet 0:2

' INVENTOR. AZAA/K 0 A/z-z 504/ ORTHODONTIC HEADGEAR Filed Feb. 6, 1967 Sheet 2 of2 if INVENTOR. 5'? [em/M Q /I/L 5104/ {Z76 /5 BY United States Patent 3,423,832 ORTHODONTEC HEADGEAR Frank 0. Nelson, 15728 /2 Gale Ave, Hacienda Heights, Calif. 91745 Filed Feb. 6, 1967, Ser. No. 614,351 US. Cl. 32-14 Int. Cl. A61c 7/00 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Background of the invention Orthodontics is a branch of dentistry concerned with the treatment and movement of malpositioned teeth. A variety of appliances are available to the orthodontist for application of controlled forces urging such teeth into a corrected position. Intraoral appliances such as arch wires, brackets and toothbands, clasps, springs, and the like are mounted on the patients teeth and function within the mouth. Extraoral appliances such as wire face bows are sometimes coupled to the intraoral appliances, and extend out of the mouth to be anchored to a neckband or other fixture mounted on the patients head.

In the past, extraoral appliances have been used for the application of posterior forces tending to urge a tooth or several teeth rearwardly in the mouth. There exists a need for extraoral equipment capable of applying anterior forces to urge one or more teeth forwardly in the mouth, but Orthodontists have been handicapped by the lack of suitable external head-engaging fixtures to provide an anchor or external support for the appliance passing through the patients mouth and secured to the teeth.

The headgear of this invention solves this long-standing problem of applying anterior or forwardly pulling forces to teeth, and is adapted to correction of a variety of malocculsion forms. My headgear is useful to reposition individual teeth or groups of several teeth which show, for example, overretraction and distoversion (tilting of the tooth axis from its normal orientation) after closing a natural or postextraction gap in the dental arch. The headgear is equally useful in correcting interarch relationships where all the teeth in one arch must be shifted with respect to the other arch. The invention is sufficiently flexible that it may be used for simultaneous application of anterior forces to one group of teeth, and posterior forces to another group of teeth.

Summary of the invention Briefly stated, the orthodontic headgear of this invention comprises a substantially rigid helmet adapted to fit on a patients head. The helmet includes a crown portion, and a pair of side portions depend from the crown portion and are formed to fit against the sides of the head. A rear portion of the helmet depends from the crown and is formed to fit against the back of the head, a front portion of the helmet depends from the crown and is formed to fit against the patients forehead. A member is attached to and extends forwardly from the helmet, the member having a forward portion spaced from and positioned ahead of the patients mouth when the helmet is on the head. Fastening means are provided on the forward portion of the member, and are adapted for attachment to an orthodontic appliance.

Preferably, the headgear includes a chin strap attached to the helmet and adapted to fit snugly around the pa- 3,423,832 Patented Jan. 28, 1969 tients chin when the helmet is on the head. The helmet also preferably includes a second fastening means such as a pair of hooks secured to the side portions of the helmet for anchoring elastic bands.

Brief description 0 the drawings The invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the orthodontic headgear of this invention as mounted on a patients head;

FIG. 2 is a front elevation of the orthodontic headgear; and

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a dental arch and a portion of the headgear, showing a typical application of the headgear with an orthodontic appliance.

Description of the preferred embodiment Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, an orthodontic headgear 10 according to the invention includes a substantially rigid helmet 11 adapted to fit on the head of a patient receiving orthodontic treatment. The helmet includes a crown portion 12, and a pair of side portions 13 extend downwardly from the crown portion and are formed to fit snugly against the sides of the patients head. Preferably, each side portion includes a sound opening 14 to avoid interference with the wearers hearing when the helmet is in place.

A rear portion 15 of the helmet extends downwardly from the crown portion and between the side portions. The rear portion is contoured to fit snugly against the sub-occipital portion of the wearers head. A front portion 16 of the helmet depends from the crown and extends between side portions -13. The front portion is contoured to fit against and cover most of the wearers forehead, whereby the helmet is anchored against forces tending to shift it rearwardly on the head.

The helmet is preferably integrally molded from a plastic material, and commercially available football helmets have been found to be adaptable for use in the headgear. To insure a close, comfortable fit, the interior of the helmet is covered with a conventional, resilient liner 17 of sponge rubber or a similar material.

A generally U-shaped support member 19 includes a pair of arms 2t) and a curved bight portion 21 joining the arms. The arms 20 are pivotally secured to opposite respective side portions 13 of the helmet by a pair of bolts 22 fixed to the side portions. A slightly curved, generally vertical slot 23 is formed in each arm 20 and spaced forwardly from bolt 22. A pair of locking bolts 24 are secured to respective side portions 13 of the helmet, and extend through the slots in the arms. A nut 25 on each bolt 24 locks the support member in any desired position.

A pair of hooks 28 are secured to bight portion 21 of the support member as best seen in FIG. 3. The hooks are oriented to face the helmet and serve as anchor points for elastic bands, springs or other appliances used in orthodontic treatment. Preferably, the bight portion also includes a series of holes 29 therethrough, and other auxiliary appliances may be inserted through these holes and locked in place with a nut or other fastener (not shown).

A conventional chin strap 32 includes a central cup portion 33 contoured to fit comfortably over the patients chin. Each end 34 of the chin strap carries a conventional snap fastener 35 adapted to be secured to a mating snap fastener 36 secured to each respective arm 20 on the support member. One of fasteners 35 is mounted on a buckle 37 whereby the length of the strap can be adjusted to individual requirements.

The helmet preferably includes a plurality of fastening means such as buttons or hooks 39 secured to respective side portions 13. These hooks are arranged at varying elevations along the side portions, and are used to anchor auxiliary appliances as described below.

A typical application of the orthodontic headgear of this invention is illustrated in FIGS. 13 which show an arrangement suitable for the correction of a Class II, Division I, malocclusion in which the teeth of the upper arch protrude and are positioned forwardly of the mating teeth in the lower arch. In correcting this kind of malocclusion, one treatment method is to apply an anterior force to the teeth in the lower jaw which tends to move these teeth forwardly, and a posterior force to the teeth in the upper jaw tending to move these'teeth rearwardly into proper occlusal relationship with the lower teeth. The helmet is installed on the patients head, and the chin strap is secured snugly in place to lock the patients lower jaw in a fixed position.

As shown in FIG. 3, teeth 41 in the lower arch are banded in a conventional fashion and the usual orthodontic brackets 42 are secured to the bands. A conventional arch wire 43 passes through and is secured to the brackets. The arch wire carries a pair of hooks 44 on oppos te sides of the anterior teeth in the arch. A pair of elastic bands 45 are coupled between hooks 44 on the arch wire and hooks 28 on the support member. The elastic bands are stretched when installed as shown in FIG. 3, and thereby exert an anterior force on the arch wire and hence on all the banded teeth in the lower arch. These teeth are thus urged forwardly in the lower jaw as the chin is restrained against forward motion by chin strap 32.

The elastic bands can also be secured at other points along the dental arch of the lower jaw, depending upon the type of corrective movement desired. If the dental arch is overly narrow, the intraoral attachment point is along the sides of the arch and may be made at hooks 46 secured adjacent the molar teeth. If the arch tends to be wide, one or more elastic bands are secured to the center of the arch. For example, a hook 47 is located at the center of the arch wire shown in FIG. 3, and is useful as an anchor point in the event of an overly wide arch.

To retract the upper-jaw teeth, a conventional orthodontic wire face how 48 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) is inserted in the mouth and anchored in conventional buccal tubes (not shown) mounted on the molar teeth of the upper jaw. The ends of the face bow which extend from the patients mouth include hooks 49, and a pair of elastic bands 50 are stretched to extend between hooks 49 and hooks 39 on the helmet. These bands thus exert a retraction force which is transmitted by the face bow to the teeth in the upper jaw, tending to move the teeth rearwardly with respect to the teeth of the lower jaw.

Front and rear portions 16 and of the helmet serve to anchor the headgear securely in place on the users head, and resist forces from the elastic bands which would otherwise tend to shift the helmet on the head. It is important that these portions fit well down on the forehead and over the suboccipital portion of the skull in order to avoid any fore-and-aft movement of the helmet.

The orthodontic headgear is entirely suitable for use while the patient is asleep. In this case, the wearers forehead is relieved of any loading because the forces arising from the elongated elastic bands are transmitted through the rigid helmet to the bed or pillow on which the wearers head is resting.

It is to be understoood that the term malpositioned tooth is used herein to designate a tooth which is either incorrectly positioned with respect to adjoining teeth in its respective arch, or which is in an improper occlusal relationship with respect to a mating tooth in the opposing arch. For example, it may be desirable to move the entire lower dental arch forward to correct a malocclusion. In such cases, one possible treatment plan is to apply an orthopedic force to the lower teeth urging the entire lower jaw forward with respect to the upper jaw. The headgear of this invention is Well suited to this form of treatment, and is used with elastic bands or other resilient members extending between the support member and anchor teeth in the lower jaw. The chin strap is normally not used in this application to permit free anterior displacement of the lower jaw.

The headgear may be used with a variety of orthodontic appliances, and is not limited to the specific devices shown in the drawings. Wire springs or other resilient elements may replace the elastic bands, and a number of different orthodontic appliances may be used to correct specific malocclusion problems such as distoversion, or to move selected teeth in one arch to close a gap created by an extraction. Support member 19 on the helmet provides a convenient anchor for any conventional appliance useful to correct these problems.

There has been described an orthodontic headgear which is useful in the correction of a variety of malocclusions. The headgear is comfortable for the patient to wear, and provides the orthodontist with a flexibility in treatment technique which has hitherto not been available. Tests of the headgear show it to be an effective tool in applying anterior forces or combined anterior and posterior forces to teeth to be repositioned in the patients mouth.

I claim:

1. Orthodontic headgear for applying an anterior-pull force to a malpositioned tooth, comprising:

a substantially rigid helmet adapted to tit on a patients head and including a crown portion, a pair of side portions depending from the crown and formed to fit against the sides of the head, a rear portion depending from the crown and formed to fit against the back of the head, and a front portion depending from the crown and formed to fit against the patients forehead to restrain rearward movement of the helmet on the head;

a support member extending forwardly from the helmet, the member having a forward portion spaced from and positioned extraorally ahead of the patients mouth when the helmet is on the head;

attachment means connected to the support member and helmet for securing the support member to the helmet so the forward portion is substantially rigid and immovable with respect to the helmet when the headgear is in use; and

fastening means attached to the forward portion of the member and adapted for attachment to an orthodontic appliance for applying anterior force to the tooth.

2. The orthodontic headgear defined in claim 1, and further comprising a chin strap attached to the helmet and adapted to fit snugly around the patients chin when the helmet is on the head.

3. The orthodontic headgear defined in claim 2, and further comprising second fastening means secured to the side portions of the helmet for anchoring an elastic band.

4. The orthodontic headgear defined in claim 3 in which the support member is generally U-shaped and in which the attachment means is adapted to secure ends of the support member pivotally to the side portions of the helmet and is further adapted to lock the support member in a selected position whereby the position of the member is adjustable.

5. The orthodontic headgear defined in claim 4 in which the fastening means on the support member comprises a hook secured to the member.

6. The orthodontic headgear defined in claim 5, and further comprising an orthodontic appliance coupled to 11 e hook and adapted to be secured to the malpositioned tooth, the appliance including a resilient member for ur ing the tooth generally forwardly toward the U-shaped member.

7. The orthodontic headgear defined in claim 3, and further comprising an orthodontic face bow and an elastic band coupled between the face bow and the second fastening means.

8. The orthodontic appliance defined in claim 2 in which the support member is generally U-shaped, and in 3,428,832 5 6 which the attachment means is adapted to secure ends of References Cited the support member adjustably to the helmet and is further adapted to lock the support member in a selected UNITED STATES PATENTS position whereby the position of the member is adjustable; 649,896 5/1900 Bmghman 32 14 and further comprising an orthodontic appliance coupled 5 762305 6/1902 Llqdas 32 14 to the fastening means and adapted to be secured to the 218221612 2/1958 Smckler 32 14 malpositioned tooth, the appliance including a resilient member for urging the tooth generally forwardly toward ROBERT PESHOCK "nary Exammer' the forward portion. 

